“The Ultimate Active Experience in the Dolomites”
Here at Dolomite Mountains, we believe in the value of sharing our love of the mountains and natural places with others – but also know we need to take care of them if they are to be here for future generations. We employ sustainable practices in our daily operations – everything from recycling in our offices and leaving only footprints on our adventures. We select hotels that adhere to environmentally sustainable standards wherever possible, and even feature two CasaClima hotels in our accommodation options. (CasaClima is a building certification that establishes a standard for energy efficiency that follows the Kyoto Protocol and a standard for use of sustainable resources.) And we support several worthy organizations that contribute to the betterment of societies and their environs around the world.
There are two organizations that we partner with directly: 100 BLUE ANGELS / THE OCEAN FOUNDATION and SUMMITS4KIDS. We encourage you to learn more about them (see below), and if you are feel their work is as important as we do, to help us support their efforts.
100 BLUE ANGELS/THE OCEAN FOUNDATION
Wallace “J.” Nichols is an independent scientist that has one main purpose in life: to save our oceans. His involvement in a number of conservation projects was born out of a lifelong love of nature. Fueled by his passion, he has worked tirelessly to fulfill his commitment to maintaining abundant life in the oceans and on the coasts. His work is funded by a number of generous donors and organizations that believe in his cause. One such organization is The Ocean Foundation, which Dolomite Mountains is proud to support.
The Ocean Foundation’s mission is to support, strengthen, and promote those organizations and individuals that are dedicated to reversing the trend of destruction of ocean environments around the world. The goal is to promote healthy ocean ecosystems and benefit the human communities that depend on them. The Ocean Foundation provides the fiscal sponsorship for eleven projects that J. Nichols is involved with.
Several years ago our founder, Agustina Lagos Marmol, met “J.” at an ATTA event during which he handed out a blue marble to each person in attendance. These marbles were to be re-gifted as a “thank you” to others who do their part to make a difference to both the planet and in the lives of others. Agustina was moved by this gesture and the powerful meaning behind it, as well as the important and valuable work Dr. Nichols does to help the environment – so much so that she decided to become one of the first “100 Blue Angels” and support both J. Nichols and the Ocean Foundation.
Being located in one of the most breathtaking natural settings in the world isn’t lost on us. At Dolomite Mountains we know all too well how important conservation efforts are for the earth and our fragile environment. That’s why this cause is so near and dear to our hearts. We believe in what Dr. Nichols does and are inspired by how he dedicates his life to the preservation of our oceans. We also believe that in the travel business we should always be aware of the impact we have when developing and promoting any area in which we work. As such, we are proud to support this worthy cause and encourage others to join us in our ongoing efforts to give back and make a difference in our world.
SUMMITS4KIDS
SUMMITS4KIDS is a non-profit association born from the will to make a little difference in the inequalities of today’s world. Formed by three world-class female skiers, SUMMITS4KIDS supports carefully selected small, honest, local humanitarian programs that assist boys and girls in need. Organizations are typically led by native adults from the community in the roles of teachers, doctors, and psychologists.
These three women, Swiss freeskier Laura Bohleber, Swedish freefrider Marja Persson, and Italian freeskier and Dolomite Mountains guide Giulia Monego, have spent time exploring mountains all over the world. Coming from wealthy countries where they’ve had the ability to turn their passion into their jobs, they have witnessed the contrasts of modern globalization where young people from other countries do not have the same opportunities, and in fact face challenges as extreme as having to worry about where their next meal will come from.
Athletes participating in SUMMITS4KIDS projects pay their own travel expenses, in addition to actively fundraising, and nearly 100% of donations made to SUMMITS4KIDS go directly to the local humanitarian projects that we have chosen to help. (Only a small portion of funds used to pay the operating costs of the association itself – website, postage, etc.) In the future, SUMMITS4KIDS aim not only to continue to launch new challenge projects, but also to maintain support for the organizations in Ecuador and Peru that they already work with. In order to continue the work these magnificent women have begun, they need your support. More information about the organization and how to make a donation can be found online http://www.summits4kids.org/.